Protesters clash with police in Mombasa over Kenyan tax bill
Wednesday June 26 2024
Police officers argue with a protestor during a demonstration against Kenya's proposed finance bill 2024/2025 in Nairobi, Kenya, June 25, 2024.
Anti-tax protesters in one of Kenya’s coastal cities, Mombasa, on Tuesday (June 25) taunted police, who fired teargas and gunshots into the air, with protesters hurling back stones as they ran away.
Citizens protested across the country as lawmakers sat in parliament to pass the new bill, with many calling for President William Ruto to quit office as well as voicing their opposition to the tax rises.
In Nairobi, at least five protesters were shot dead when police fired on demonstrators trying to storm Kenya's legislature in Nairobi earlier in the day, with sections of the parliament building set ablaze as lawmakers inside passed the bill.
Parliament approved the finance bill, moving it through to a third reading by lawmakers. The next step is for the legislation to be sent to the president for signing. He can send it back to parliament if he has any objections.
Ruto won an election almost two years ago on a platform of championing Kenya's working poor but has been caught between the competing demands of lenders such as the International Monetary Fund, which is urging the government to cut deficits to obtain more funding and a hard-pressed population.